Week 151: A Bestie's Birthday

elenalilamartin
Nov 23, 2025
3 min read

Week 150: November 16th-22nd, 2025

Many of you probably don't have a BFFSPS like I do in An-Ya. We have been Best Friends Forever Since Pre-School (hence, BFFSPS) and despite going to different schools, different colleges, and now living in different parts of California, I still consider her one of my closest friends. We grew up across the street from each other and I have countless memories of us playing with Barbies, Bratz, and MyScene dolls and drawing for hours.

Being back in the Bay to watch my family's dog Kingsley while my parents are in Scotland means I was able to go to An-Ya's Paint and Sip birthday party. It was also the first time I got to see her house in Richmond and their new kitchen renovations.

Even though I got her a birthday present a while ago at Miniso, I did not want to show up "empty handed" so I stopped at Whole Foods to get some flowers and some drinks. I made sure to get cat-safe flowers for her cat Miso. FYI - Many cut flowers in bouquets are toxic to cats. So, even though lilies, carnations and tulips are pretty, I went for an odd mix of roses and sunflowers. I also got some organic sake and some yuzu-flavored sparkling water and tart cherry lemonade to mix (which, despite being a shot in the dark, turned out pretty good!).

I like to call An-Ya a "pioneer woman," because she is an incredible artist, incredible cook, and an incredible person. She single-handedly decorated their home, prepped, planned and made enough Japanese curry with tonkatsu chicken and rice to feed 20+ people, and made her OWN birthday cake (red-velvet and cream cheese frosting). Her boyfriend, David, also brought out a special, limited-edition sake in a cat-shaped bottle for all of us to try. This night reminded me that An-Ya is one of the kindest and most creative people I know. I am constantly impressed with the level of detail, care, and talent she puts into everything she does.

An-Ya and I are similar in that we have the "too much" gene sometimes, and it shows when we host parties that involve crafts (see Week 146). Since theme of An-Ya's birthday party was a "Paint and Sip," we enjoyed drinks and painted cats in honor of Miso and An-Ya's love for animals.

There were snacks and spam musubi (also done by An-Ya) and many drinks to choose from as we dove into our canvases. We explored color theory and made many shades of greenish brown in our journey to find the right colors for our paintings.

Most of the other people were David's Ukranian friends from his childhood and it was great to meet them. It was a funny mix of people, but we all got along nicely and enjoyed channeling our inner artists to paint something. I found an inspiration photo on Pinterest after searching "easy cat canvas painting ideas," but some of the guys had great fun coming up with their own ideas. A few were drawing landscapes ("I'll add a cat in later!") and one stand out was a French "Chat" which is Chad + Cat.

I didn't get a picture of An-Ya's canvas besides our Polaroid together, nor her cousin's great tribute to Nyan Cat because I was having such a great time getting to know her friends and catching up with her. I wasn't able to fully finish my canvas, and I think it needs a little more refinement before I can consider it finished, but I'm happy with how it turned out so far. A little wiggly group of different color cats with big eyes is a cute and fun painting to have, so I'm looking forward to finishing it soon.

An-Ya and her boyfriend have really made an awesome home together and I am looking forward to the inevitable engagement (!!!) announcement. I feel so lucky that I have known An-Ya for all these years and I look forward to many more. After all, you can't call someone a BFFSPS if its not for Forever!